Your Timeline Feature On Google Maps Unveiled

Google recently announced “Your Timeline,” the latest feature on its Google Maps application. The feature shows all the locations where users of the app have been along with the time and date. The roll out of the new feature will be gradual, starting with the Web before it will be released to smartphones using the Android OS of the internet search giant.

The new feature is designed to allow users to remember the place where they’ve been to, such as the road trips they took or a summer holiday they had last year.

Google project manager Gerard Sanz revealed through a blog post that “Your Timeline” gives users the opportunity to visualize their real-world routines. However, the new Google Maps feature also shows the amount of data collected by the company from its users.

New Google Maps Feature Unveiled - image credit: codeproject.com

Most of the revenue of the company is taken from advertising and depends on being able to know the personal information of its users, including the things they searched online. The company has been criticized by privacy advocates due to the information it stores about its users.

However, Google countered that the new feature also has some privacy controls. Users have the capability of deleting anything on their timeline, including location data along with the entire timeline. The names of the places on Google Maps can also be edited by users or they can opt to disable location tracking services entirely.

Posted by George Daniels on Thursday July 23 2015, 3:48 PM EDT. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Technology. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0